Introduction to Fiduciary Duty Expert Witness

Finding the right expert witness is important for cases that have a need for details, connections from evidence and even when the evidence supplied is confusing or is hard to associate with certain aspects of the claim.

For fiduciary duties, the professional hired must explain to the judge or jury how this relates to a person and a relationship between him or her and the individual owed a type of care. This person is the beneficiary in the relationship, and the highest standards are applied to the care owed to him or her. This leads to an expert being hired to detail the association, why the litigation commenced and how to proceed from there.

Fiduciary law covers a person or institution that has a responsibility to or for ensuring duties are carried out to benefit another individual or group. This means the fiduciary owes a duty of care, and when this is not administered properly, he or she could be liable for damages. Other aspects of law may encompass these cases due to the broad range fiduciary law covers. Additionally, there may be a contract in place between the beneficiary and the fiduciary. This upholds what duties should be carried out and what type of care must be provided to the individual receiving it.

The Fiduciary Duty

Financial and security purposes are connected to fiduciaries in many different transactions because of the trust that exists between certain professionals and their clients. Before the fiduciary relationship is established by the courts, it must be determined if there is a duty and association in effect first. Lawyers and other experts explain that a fiduciary relationship or affiliation exists when advice or a duty is provided to another party so that he or she may benefit. There are certain factors that are included in these duties as well as specifics to the relationship. This assists the judge in understanding the implications of a breach.

Concerns of fiduciaries should include a duty of care to the client or individual. This means that the person is provided some form of benefit. This could be monetary, advice or something else entirely. He or she also owes a duty of loyalty to the client. He or she is not permitted to provide details of the relationship to others without explicit permission. A duty of honesty binds the truth from professional to client. Dishonesty may cause a breach. Additionally, a duty of trust usually exists between the two parties. When all other aspects are included, trust generally is implied to occur.

The Expert Witness

An expert witness that understands fiduciary duties may have experience as a fiduciary or that has assisted clients of them through difficult situations. When the fiduciary is not providing his or her duty of care, the client or beneficiary may suffer financially or in a similar manner. The expert may have helped one of these persons through the event by reaching out to certain others or by initiating a suit with a lawyer for the individual. Evidence may have been collected to prove that the fiduciary was not performing his or her duties, providing the correct care, was not honest or loyal to the beneficiary or may have breached some contract in place.

The fiduciary relationship is understood by an expert witness. This means that he or she knows what type of contracts would be in effect between the two parties and how the association should work under the right circumstances. This means the person that owes the duty of care should be ensuring financial security or other assistance to the beneficiary so that some type of benefit is being received. If a contract does exist, a breach could lead to litigation. However, if the client is unaware that a breach has occurred or does not know how to proceed, the expert in the field may be of assistance in seeking out the right contact to help in the matter.

The Fiduciary Duty Expert

If there is a relationship that has not been properly handled, it is important that the matter is resolved. This is where a fiduciary expert may be of help in the court room. He or she may need to explain to the judge or jury how these associations should normally work under standard guidelines. The expert may need to use visual graphics to detail the process of a usual fiduciary duty of care and loyalty to a client. With his or her testimony, it is possible the chances of success increase.

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Disclaimer: While every effort has been made to ensure the accuracy of this publication, it is not intended to provide legal advice as individual situations will differ and should be discussed with an expert and/or lawyer.